


Little Miss Perfect

by Brynn_writes



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, But only a little, Cute, F/F, Gay, High School, Little Miss Perfect, Moreid, angsty, but kinda?, idk - Freeform, multichapter songfic?, songfic? but not really?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-06
Updated: 2021-01-10
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:40:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,653
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26800795
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brynn_writes/pseuds/Brynn_writes
Summary: Jennifer Jareau is perfect. Straight A's, soccer star, 4.6 GPA. She goes to church with her mother and brother every Sunday, volunteers with youth group on Saturdays, and finishes all of her homework on busses and during late-night study sessions. She's a shoo-in for valedictorian.But when Emily Prentiss moves to town? JJ's secret becomes harder and harder to keep.(inspired by the song Little Miss Perfect by Taylor Louderman)
Relationships: Jennifer "JJ" Jareau/Emily Prentiss
Comments: 7
Kudos: 74





	1. Straight Forward

JJ groaned, her head falling forward against her locker door as her friend rambled on. She had a game after school and two quizzes after lunch, but that wasn't supposed to bother her. She aced every quiz, won every game, and still had time to finish all of her AP homework when she got home. 

Penelope droned on, relaying every bit of gossip she could remember from her day. From homecoming dates to who was smoking pot in the bathrooms, Penelope Garcia knew about it, and by extension, JJ usually did, too. 

"Pen, I have to study, please can we go to the library?" JJ asked, finally turning to face her overly happy best friend. 

"Fine, but only if you let me tell you the biggest thing ever!" Penelope agreed, her eyes sparkling the way they did when she had an exclusive, hot-off-the-presses secret. 

"On the way. What's up today?" JJ relented, gathering her Spanish and History textbooks in her arms.

"I was in math with Will today, and it was free time, so he came and sat by me. Him. He never sits by me. So, naturally, I asked what was up, right? He asked if you had a date to homecoming!" Penelope squealed loudly, clapping her hands together.

"Will?" JJ wrinkled up her nose. "He's like always drunk. And he just broke up with Jenna, right?" 

"Right, but Jayje, if he asks you, you can go!" Penelope insisted.

"I can go, either way, I just won't." JJ pointed out. "I don't want to go. Especially not with him." 

"You're so boring!" Penelope whined. "Will you at least go to one dance before graduation?" 

"Prom." JJ fired back. 

"Oh, come on!"

"Pen, it's just not my scene. You thrive, at parties and dances, I don't. I thrive in quizzes."

"Fine, alright, but maybe you can go on another date with him?"

"Gross, hell no." JJ laughed, so overly thankful when they made it to the library. "I have two quizzes and a game, so I'll see you tomorrow." 

"Fine, bye."  
\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -  
JJ left the library after the bell for class rang, heading towards her history class with a heavy sigh. She plopped into her seat five minutes before the late bell, completely zoned out and still going through dates in her head. She kept especially quiet in this class, hoping to avoid the wrath of Linda Barnes, the most popular girl in school. The teacher handed out quizzes, and JJ was so overly thankful for the multiple-choice questions and the silence of the room, which was soon broken by the arrival of an impossibly beautiful girl slipping into the room. 

Shoulder-length, raven-colored hair framed her face perfectly, an awkward little smile on her lips as she spoke to the teacher, handing him a slip of paper and nodding when he murmured something to her. He pointed the pretty girl towards the open seat next to JJ, and the blonde snapped her gaze back to her quiz before she got caught staring. The pretty brunette sunk into the chair next to JJ's. 

Great.


	2. My Heart Gives a Flutter

"So, you met the new girl?" JJ dropped her textbook on her foot and slammed her locker door shut. 

"Jeez, Pen! Give a girl a warning." JJ groaned.

"Sorry!" Penelope retrieved the textbook from the floor with a sheepish smile, handing it to her friend. "I got excited. The new girl, Emily? She's an ambassador's kid, and she's lived in the Middle East and France and Italy! And she's like crazy rich, too. Spence says she reads Vonnegut. Isn't that cool?"

"Cool, yeah." JJ nodded half-heartedly, shoving her textbook back into her locker. 

"And she's so hot! If I were into girls, I'd totally go for her." 

"Me too," JJ mumbled, biting hard on the inside of her cheek. 

"Okay, what's up with you? Spill." Penelope insisted.

"It's nothing. I'm just dumb." JJ shrugged.

"Jennifer Jareau, you couldn't be stupid if you tried. What is it?" Penelope raised an eyebrow. She wasn't budging.

"Pen, I said it's nothing."

"I don't believe you."

"It's nothing!"

"No, it's not!"

"Jennifer Jareau, what's wrong?"

"Nothing!"

"What, is it your mom?"

"No."

"Did your dad miss his weekend?"

"I don't care about his stupid weekends, Penelope."

"Did you get a B?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Is it Ross?"

"Pen, drop it!" JJ slammed her locker door, finally meeting Penelope's eyes. "It's decathalon presentation day. We have a pretty big group of freshmen, and we lost almost everyone to graduation."

"Still splitting up to cover all the classes?" Penelope asked.

"Yeah. Aaron, David, and Alex are coming, so it's two to a room." JJ murmured. "I have to meet everyone."

* * *

"Everyone has one room, Spence and I have two. Go to class when you've finished." JJ announced, plopping onto one of the beanbags Mr. Reardon had set out in his room. "We have thirty minutes."

"Eat a donut and have some coffee, grumpy." Derek teased.

"I'm not a dwarf, Derek." JJ rolled her eyes, which jumped to the door when it opened. The new girl - Emily, JJ reminded herself - stepped in tentatively. 

"I think I'm lost again." She muttered, a shy smile on her lips. "You're in my history class, aren't you? I'm Emily."

"I am. Jennifer Jareau. That's Spencer, Aaron, David, Alex, and Derek. We're on the decathalon team." JJ smiled back. The brunette's gaze swept over the group, and JJ couldn't keep her eyes off of her. 

"I will remember none of your names, but it's nice to meet you." Emily smiled. "Can anyone help me find Ms. Louderman's room?" 

"You've got like half an hour before class. You can hang here with us, and you're on the way. Spence and I can walk you." JJ offered. "We have extra donuts."

"Sure. Thanks." Emily smiled a little brighter, taking a spot on the floor next to JJ's. 

"Ignore everything Derek says, he's a flirt," JJ whispered loudly, catching the napkin Derek threw her way easily. "I'll kick your shins, Morgan."

"And risk your goal-kicking foot, soccer star? Doubt it." Derek teased.

"Watch it. Anyway, this is Mr. Reardon's room, but he's in the teacher's lounge." JJ turned back to Emily. 

"You guys seem to have known each other for a while." Emily smiled.

"Most of us met in freshman year. David's a senior, though, and Alex transferred last year. Spence isn't a freshman, by the way. He's a junior, he's just a genius, so he's skipped a few grades." JJ explained. "And I have a feeling you're gonna be stuck with us. Or, at least, me."

"I'd be okay with that." Emily giggled, and JJ was a goner. Did she mean that the way JJ heard it? Were they flirting? In front of her friends? 

"My friends call me JJ if you couldn't tell." JJ's cheeks flushed, and she knew it. 

"I like Jennifer," Emily smirked.

"Fair enough."


	3. Straight Girl

That day at lunch, JJ joined the group in the cafeteria, finding a seat between Hotch's new girlfriend, Beth, and Spencer. The young genius was on a rant about Dr. Who again, historical accuracies, and improbabilities. JJ tuned out almost immediately, plugging earbuds into her phone and deciding to work on some homework instead of engaging in conversation. Surely, Derek knew about her and Penelope's little fight that morning, and that meant full-table drama was looming over them. JJ wasn't in the mood for that. 

She was zoned out, half-leaning against Spencer as she read through _Catcher in the Rye_ for English class. Scribbling notes onto sticky notes and sticking them in the pages, JJ didn't even notice when Emily slid into the space between her and Beth. The brunette caught her attention by tapping the book in the blonde's hands gently, a cute little smile on her lips. JJ caught chocolate brown eyes with her own as she jerked her gaze up from the page she was reading.

"Hey." Emily chuckled, tucking a perfect strand of raven hair behind her ear. "You said I'm stuck with you, so I figured I'd see if you meant it."

"Good because I did." JJ tucked a bookmark between the pages, shutting the book gently and dropping it on the table.

"Good." Emily's smile grew, and her pale cheeks tinted pink.

"How are your classes going?" JJ asked, collecting her study materials neatly. 

"Good. Most of the teachers are nice. I met this girl, though. I think her name's Linda? Who pissed in her cereal?" Emily scrunched up her nose, delighting in the laugh JJ let out. 

"She's like that all the time. You'd be surprised what fear can get you. In her case, social standing. She's easily the most popular girl in school." JJ smiled.

"She's above you?" Emily seemed genuinely surprised.

"Um, yeah." JJ laughed. "I mean, people know me, but it's because I tutor, and I'm in clubs. Captain of the decathalon and star soccer player doesn't get you much other than your name announced in the rallies. Besides, that's a bunch of crap. These are the only people I need to like me." 

"Everyone knows you. I got asked like twelve times if I'm friends with you today, then if you had a boyfriend." Emily laughed.

"Ugh. That's Penelope's gossip influence. I don't, and I don't date." JJ rolled her eyes.

"Don't make any commitments to staying single. Dating can be fun." 

"I've had like two boyfriends, and they both tried to talk me into sex and drugs, in that order. No, thanks." JJ shook her head.

"I didn't say boys, did I?" Emily smirked. 

"I'm...not -" JJ's denial was cut off by Derek shoving Spencer into her. Ruffling Spencer's hair, Derek's antics pushed JJ almost into Emily's lap. "Gay." The last word was useless. Her face was burning bright red as one final push landed her fully in Emily's lap, about to topple over onto Beth. 

"Sure." Emily nodded, looking not at all convinced as her arms looped around JJ's waist to steady her. "You're not gay."

"But they are. Derek, stop it!" JJ turned to land a perfectly placed kick to Derek's shin that made him groan. "Flirt like a sane person, jeez."

"Rude." Derek sat back down, leaving enough room for JJ to slide off of Emily's lap, but the arms around her waist held tight. Spencer's cheeks burned almost as bright as JJ's as his hand landed not-so-subtly on top of Derek's. JJ slid back onto the bench, very proud of herself, just before the bell announcing their next class rang.


	4. I Make a Point to Be on Time

Decathalon meetings were JJ's oasis. Outside of the "nerd club," no one liked her. Teacher's pet, stuck-up church girl. Her grades and reputation came with a price. Decathalon was safe from that. Everyone in the club was at least a little bit nerdy, or they wouldn't have joined. With kids like Spencer and Penelope surrounding her, she was finally safe from torment. Spencer, being a grade younger than her, was the smartest person she'd ever met, even if his grades sometimes didn't show it. Derek was their 'dumb jock,' but he just put off his schoolwork because he could scrape by with good test scores, and he knew it. David Rossi was their fine arts expert, Alex Blake, aspiring linguist, Penelope, the hacker. 

When Emily agreed to tag along for a meeting, JJ had squealed and practically tackled her in a hug, chattering on about how there were kids who didn't sit at the table who were still _amazing,_ how the teacher was buying pizza that day, and the teacher was the best she'd ever had. Emily had giggled, leaned her head on her hand, and listened to JJ's rambling contently. 

"C'mon, I have to be first!" JJ grabbed Emily's hand, pulling her through the crowded halls. 

"Why?" Emily laughed, weaving through the people with JJ.

"I'm captain, I'm always first! I'm supposed to greet everyone and stuff." JJ insisted, stopping finally in front of a classroom with an open door and a few kids already inside, the teacher at his desk, greeting JJ with a wide smile when they entered.

"Hi, Mr. Reardon." JJ chimed, dropping Emily's hand and immediately missing the contact. "I brought a new friend. She's amazing at language and literature." 

"Good to know. Did she hold you back? You usually sprint here." The teacher asked, a smile on his lips.

"She's farther from here than I am, so I had to walk to her and then drag her over." JJ giggled, bumping her hip against Emily's. "Em, Mr. Reardon, Mr. Reardon, Emily. He teaches our only freshman AP class. He recruited me when I was a freshman, and I got voted captain sophomore year. The second year as captain is so much easier."

"Only because you decided to have co-captains for each division. Speak of the devil." Mr. Reardon nodded towards the door, Spencer and Derek entering with Penelope on their heels, whispering excitedly. Emily could've sworn she caught her name in the hushed conversation, but she didn't bother asking.

"Spencer is the Scholastic team captain - 'B-team,' and Derek is Varsity. Divisions are based on GPA. You'd be on my team if you made it. And you probably will." JJ explained. "There are ten categories, art, economics, essay, interview, language and literature, math, music, science, speech, and Super Quiz. The interview is just a conversation, you submit your essay beforehand, and Super Quiz is like a trivia contest if that makes sense." 

"You really think I'll compete?" Emily asked. 

"Of course. We have me for math, Dave for our arts and music, and you'd be our language and literature person. We try to balance out our teams so the whole team does well and places high in overall, and then there are individual awards. We've never won overall, but we place well." JJ explained. She sat down on the top of one of the desks, smiling at students as they filed in. "That's David. Alex is on Spence's team, and so is Kate. They're both seniors, and we try to give them places before underclassmen. Then there's Ashley, she's a sophomore on Derek's team, and Penelope's on Varsity, too."

"Why're there so many people if none of them are competing?" Emily took the chair attached to JJ's desk, throwing her feet up and into JJ's lap.

"Underclassmen attend as alternates and to show interest. Ashley only made it because she attended every single meeting last year and we needed an economics person. I'd rather have Kate there, but her GPA's too high." JJ explained.

"You choose for everyone? I thought you were co-captains."

"It's a pyramid scheme. I'm the captain of captains, then the captain of Honors. I may give that to Dave. Or you, if he doesn't want it. Derek and Spencer get to choose their people if they want, hence Penelope and Alex, but if they have an empty spot and don't or won't decide, I fill it. Mr. Reardon's just our ride."

"Has anyone ever told you how cute you are when you explain things?" Emily teased, and JJ rolled her eyes, cheeks flushing a deep red.

"Shut up."

* * *

JJ felt like passing out, dying, and taking a thousand cold showers all at once by the end of that afternoon's soccer practice. She didn't bother changing out of her clothes, deciding to sling her backpack over her shoulder and make her way out to the parking lot to head home. It was one of her only evenings that week without a game, and she was grateful as she threw her bag into the trunk of her beat-up, hand-me-down Taurus. She was about to drop into the passenger seat when she caught a glimpse of Emily leaning against a new-looking convertible, smoking. Her raven hair was tied up, her oversized denim jacket was thrown aside that left her in a cropped, black band tee and ripped black jeans. Emily blew out a puff of smoke just as she noticed JJ coming her way, lips twisting into a smile.

"Hey." Emily offered JJ the cigarette with a smile, eyes raking over JJ's body. She wore a loose tank and leggings, sports bra very visible through the sheer top.

"No, thanks. What're you doing here?" JJ leaned her hip against the car, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth as Emily took another drag of her cigarette.

"Avoiding going home. I went to the library for study hall, I watched soccer practice, and then I waited for the star player to come out." Emily teased, dropping her half-finished smoke on the ground before stomping it out.

"Dork." JJ rolled her eyes. "Why'd you wait for me?"

"Bored. Don't want to go home" Emily shrugged.

"Why don't you want to go home?"

"Big houses are nice, don't get me wrong, but big, empty houses with no one but the people who work for my mother suck." Emily frowned, staring down at her Doc Martens. 

"Do you want to come to my place for dinner?" JJ blurted out, Emily's eyes shooting up to meet hers. "My mom's supposed to be making dinner, and my brother's a jerk, but all we have to do is shut the door."

"I don't want to impose, it's your family dinner." Emily's cheeks tinted just slightly pink as she stammered out her denial.

"It'll be fun, and you won't be alone." JJ insisted. "My mom thinks I don't have friends besides Penelope. You'd be helping me."

"Really?" Emily asked, a light smile on her lips.

"Really. Follow me." JJ giggled, pushing herself up and off of the car.


	5. Hours Speed by Like Seconds

"Mom! I brought my friend!" JJ shouted, shutting the front door and kicking off her sneakers and dropping her cleats beside them.

"Jenny!" A little boy, looking to be around five ran over, crashing into JJ for a hug.

"Hey, kiddo! How was school?" JJ ruffled his blonde hair, leaning down to press a kiss to his forehead.

"Awesome! Mama says she might sign me up for soccer! Just like you!" The kid was bouncing on his toes, beaming up at his sister.

"That's cool, monkey. This is my friend, Emily." JJ giggled, looking up to meet Emily's eyes.

"Hi! I'm Ross." The little boy chimed.

"Hi." Emily smiled softly as JJ sent him off to finish his coloring.

"He's a lot, I should've warned you." JJ giggled, taking Emily's hand gently and pulling her into the house. The living room was cluttered, but warm. Pictures decorated the walls, some of JJ as a kid, some of another girl Emily assumed was her sister. JJ kept pulling her hand until they reached the kitchen, then quickly dropped it.

"Hey, Mom. This is Emily." JJ chimed, reaching over her mom's shoulder to steal some cheese off of the top of the lasagna.

"Jennifer Jareau, your hands are dirty." JJ's mom shooed her hands away.

"It'll bake-off. We're going to my room." JJ smiled, opening the fridge to grab a water bottle, which she tossed to Emily before grabbing one of her own.

"Alright, you have a while before dinner. Nice to meet you, Emily." When JJ's mom turned around, her face said anything but that, her eyes raking over Emily's all-black (except for the ACDC logo) clothes, finding black, winged eyeliner and deep red lipstick. The look that pissed off Ambassador High-and-Mighty also worked on other parents, Good to know.

Emily let JJ pull her back into the living room and down a hallway to a cute, little room that fit JJ's personality perfectly. The walls were a pale, powder blue, covered in posters and pictures, some of her friends, some of her family. There was one picture of their friend group all lined up, Spencer wearing a hat that looked like a birthday cake, at an amusement park. They were all laughing, JJ leaning heavily on Hotch and Garcia as she tried not to fall. 

"That was Spencer's twelfth birthday. He was a freshman, we were sophomores." JJ smiled fondly at the memory. They'd all eaten as much ice cream and cotton candy and junk food they could, gone on almost every ride, and it was the best day ever. "We go big on birthdays."

"I've never celebrated." Emily shrugged. 

"What?! We're changing that. When is it?" JJ insisted.

"November 12th. JJ, it's fine, my mom just...isn't a celebrating person."

"Good for her. I am." 

"I can tell."

"Wait. November 12th is in like...five days!" JJ exclaimed, tossing a pillow at Emily. 

"Yeah, and? I don't celebrate it." Emily smirked.

"Emily Prentiss, what am I going to do with you?" JJ sighed, shaking her head.

"Love me forever?" Emily offered. 

JJ rolled her eyes, flopping back onto her bed

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Emily left the Jareau household feeling a little judged, very cool (Ross said her clothes made her look like a cool kid), and less alone than ever. JJ walked her out to the car, wrapping her in a big hug and reminding her to stay safe on the drive home. She knew she'd incur the wrath of Madame Ambassador It's-Not-Neglect-If-I-feed-And-Clothe-You, but that didn't matter. She had a friend. A real friend who wanted to talk to her and throw her a birthday party and hang out. 

Of course, when said ambassador met her at the front door, arms crossed over her chest as she stared down her daughter, Emily felt a little less floaty and a little more like crying. 

"Hey, Mom." Emily greeted her mother with sarcastic happiness, rolling her eyes as she brushed past her.

"Where were you?" Ambassador Prentiss barked.

"With a friend. I ate dinner. I'm gonna go feed Sergio." Emily rushed up the stairs, scooping up her little black kitten on the way to her room. He was a "Sorry we're moving away but here's something to make it _fun_!" present.

Emily fell asleep with her cat curled up next to her, thinking about JJ.


End file.
